"Succumbing To Gravity" by Richard Farnsworth (Reviewed by Mihir Wanchoo)

Official Author Blog
Order the book HERE

Read an excerpt HERE

AUTHOR INFORMATION: Richard Farnsworth is a scientist and soldier who decided to give in to his passion for the written word. He received his doctorate from Baylor College of medicine in cell and molecular biology. He has also served his country in the Iraq war as an Apache AH-64 gunship pilot. He lives with his family in Norfolk, Virginia. He also has various previous short story publications. This is his debut.

BOOK BLURB: Greg used to be an angel, but that was an eternity ago… Back when he was Araqiel, part of the celestial chorus… Back before he gave in to his temptations…. Before his fall!

Now he roams the wet streets of a hopeless city, feeding his heroin addiction and punishing himself for sins that cannot be forgiven. But when a desperate girl approaches him for help and a host of vengeful demons cross his path, Greg must choose between redemption and damnation. For him, the two may not be so different!

FORMAT/INFO: The e-ARC of “Succumbing to Gravity” stands at 216 pages divided over forty-five numbered, continuous chapters. The chapter narration is primarily in first person by Greg and secondarily in third person via two characters namely Maria Furcal and Detective Frank Graves.

“Succumbing to Gravity” is a solo dark urban fantasy thriller with philosophical overtones. July 14, 2010 marked the Trade paperback publication of the book by Reliquary Press.

OVERVIEW/ANALYSIS: I received a query about this book and these specific words “Heroin addicted angel” which were used in the plot description, got me interested. The story is set in both first and third person POV-format however the flow is pretty much evened out. The story begins with Greg who’s reminiscing about his days as an angel before his fall. His name was Araqiel then however he and a score of angels fell and since have been reminiscing about their glory days in various ways. Greg finds solace in heroin which gives him a peace of sorts and allows him to transcend his physical form and reminisce what it felt like to fly free.

Currently he’s shacked up with a runaway names Sarah who helps him stay sane (as much as that is possible) and also helps get odd jobs as a fortune teller. On a routine job like that he comes across a Dominican woman called Maria Furcal, who seems to be having nightmares about a man who’s hunting her however she doesn’t recognize him except for the fact that his intentions seem particularly threatening. Greg notices a peculiarity about her but does not care to decipher it, He however does warn her to place salt around her bed when she sleeps to avoid these nightmares. Unsatisfied with Greg’s assessment Maria does pay his charges and leaves. Sarah however notices that Greg might be withholding some information and when he reveals that she is in more mortal danger than he told her. Sarah immediately leaves Greg and goes in search of Maria.

Greg later on regrets his decision and decided to go after Sarah & Maria. His actions however do not bear fruit the way he wants them to. A deplorable event occurs which causes him to meet with detectives Frank Graves & Dominique Etcher. Things go from worse to perilous for Greg as he experiences Frank's bad cop side due to his actions and non-compliant attitude. Later on when Maria arrives to identify Greg, trouble arrives with reinforcements and then from here on the tale kicks up as Greg must do his best to protect Maria who’s soul is coveted by his brethren for reasons undisclosed & also at the same time he has to watch his back from Frank Graves who thinks Greg’s existence as an anathema to humanity. The tale then zooms along to its emphatic climax as Greg has to make a choice and therefore make a stand with or against his fallen herald. This story was a very different read because the subject matter while being explored in a variety of ways previously by different authors; is presented in a succinct, emotional way to hook the reader and get them involved.

The prose is competent and often showcases the characters brilliantly in all their flaws. The characters are the main draw in this story as Greg/Araqiel is the central thread which binds this tale we get to see him in all of his previous glory and current squalor. His uneasiness at the current situation is portrayed eloquently throughout the book and showcases that redemption can begin at any step for every one no matter how great the previous fall. The other two characters of Maria and Frank serve as a counterfoil to Greg as we often see him through their eyes as well and can see the confusion and disgust inspired by his actions. Maria’s character however feels a bit under-developed as she often acts as the damsel in distress and rarely shows any initiative especially when she’s supposed to the tale’s epicenter. Frank on the other hand is showcased as a cynical cop however we are given some viewpoints into his actions which are revealing and make his actions believable.

The drawback to this book was that while the author has given us a very emotional story, the pacing is bit languid. This does hamper the read from time to time. The apparent central issue of the tale when revealed does not seem so gargantuan & in the end, there’s a reveal about one of the characters which seemed very off as the reasoning just didn’t make sense to me (this was a personal observation and might not be the case for other readers). There were also a few editing errors which can be concerning for some readers however do not ultimately detract anything from the reading experience.

CONCLUSION: In the end while this book was a good read, it didn’t really measure up to its evocative blurb. Therefore while I think Richard Farnsworth is very much talented and am interested to see what he writes in the future; for me Succumbing to Gravity remains a good book which could have been better.

"What Time Forgets: The Daughters of Ard Creggan" by K.E. Redmond (Reviewed by Liviu Suciu)

Order What Time Forgets HERE (tpb) or HERE (Kindle)

INTRODUCTION: "What Time Forgets" is a recently published independent book about which we have received a review inquiry a week or two ago and as with all such that have an interesting blurb for me - criteria are mentioned in my post about notable 2010 Independent Books - I took a look at the available sample.

Since I quite liked what I read there despite not having too much of a clue where the book plans to go, I asked for a review copy and it jumped close to the top of my reading queue. The blurb below is fairly generic and actually the novel goes in some surprising directions, so I will discuss the setup in more detail later.

I would also add that What Time Forgets belongs to the relatively recent breed of books that freely mix genres and genre conventions and do not fit in a clear "subgenre" while still being core *secondary world sff adventures*: there are prophecies but not an ancient evil on a world domination/destruction quest that just got reawakened, mysterious artifacts of power, but not in quite the "magic talisman/sword" way we read in so many books and I could continue with sf-nal analogies too....

"Seers and cutthroat politicians, technocrats and a warrior class, jockey for power in a world where memories imperil the future. A soldier and a determined young woman, adversaries with their own secrets, ally to find the key that will avert a terrible reckoning on their world. A prophecy takes them from a mercenary’s stronghold to an oracle’s decaying temple, on to a monastery’s long-buried secrets and, finally, to a violent confrontation in a long-ruined fortress at sea’s edge. A final justice may well sacrifice everything they know"

OVERVIEW/ANALYSIS: "What Time Forgets" starts with a bang when a ship is boarded by enemies after being attacked with cannon fire and a dying man slips a pendant into the hands of a younger man who then slips away through a secret hatch. Then we are introduced to the city of Ard Creggan where the main storyline starts and we witness a discussion about pendants involving Zoe Deich, younger scion and heir of the city's first family, whose great-aunt Livia is the nominal head of Concordia, the assembly of the leading Ten Families that control the oligarchic city.

However we soon find out information that starts to undermine the more-or-less traditional setup with a city dominated by noble families - the "Publicans" - that control mineral wealth and mostly pre-industrial technology - though with guns and some metal industry - and who is in conflict with an agrarian, more numerous and aggressively egalitarian but poorer society - the "Citizens".

There is the mysterious Counselor that came out of nowhere centuries ago and unified the noble families and taught them how to make iron and guns and hence dominate the surrounding areas, there are long-lived seers - so the powers and longevity of the Counselor are not singular - that can see multiple future paths but are scrupulously neutral, there is Noor a secretive mind reading strange being that was brought by Zoe's diplomat father Jomini in the girl's infancy and has been her "governess" since, though she keeps a low profile so to speak, and there is the upstart miner's son, Sinon Yar who raised himself by hook and by crook to a position of power and wants to break the Publicans and lead Ard Creggan by himself.

We later meet Tiernan, the young man from the opening scene who turns out to be a "soletei" - a member of the Citizens elite military special forces - but with strong ties with Ard Creggan that were forged in the intermittent periods of truce between the two entities. The novel also expands its action way beyond Ard Creggan and we visit quite a few places, meet lots of new characters and see action, intrigue, suspense and more...

So quite an intriguing setup and while twisting and turning and going in unexpected directions, things come together as the novel goes on and What Time Forgets turns out to be a standalone with a clear theme and a definite ending though promising more; the author let me know there will be a next volume.

Looking at what made What Time Forgets a hit with me, I would have to say that the world building and the novel's main storyline with its twists and turns that kept me guessing till the end were the main reasons, while the narrative flowed very well and kept me turning page after page until the end.

The characters are pretty interesting too since while having partly the usual traits, they also have their own quirks and so become distinctive as the book goes on - most notably Zoe and Tiernan but several others I do not want to spoil too, while Sinon Yar makes a somewhat cardboard but still "love to hate" villain.

If there is a niggle outside of minor editing issues, it is the fact that What Time Forgets occasionally gets on the border of "too clever" for its own good with some anachronistic word usage like say (lumpen) proletariat and others, but overall that did not detract too much from the enjoyment of the book and the author's generally ironic modern tone made it sound natural enough, only making me "huh?" after the fact rather than throwing me out of the narrative flow all together.

Overall What Time Forgets (A+) is a highly recommended sff adventure that has both fantasy and sfnal overtones, a book with inventive world building, page turning narrative flow and a lot of twists and turns and come together in a complete package but with a hook for more...

Orbit Acquires Michael Sullivan's Ryria Revelations in a Significant Deal (by Liviu Suciu)

Since the series has been such a favorite with me and Cindy here, growing from a fun and fast opening volume to a top-top level series by the next-to-last recent fifth volume Wintertide, series that is on par with any traditional fantasy published today, I am happy to announce the following from Orbit's Jack Womack.

"Orbit is pleased to announce that it has acquired the six-book Riyria Revelations series by author Michael J. Sullivan, in a six-figure deal with agent Teri Tobias of the Teri Tobias Agency LLC. Orbit will be publishing the six titles as three two-book omnibuses in consecutive months in Fall/Winter 2011-2012. The first volume, Theft of Swords, will be published in November 2011; the second volume, Rise of Empire, in December 2011, and the final volume, Heir of Novron, in January 2012.

Senior Editor Devi Pillai says: “This is the kind of fabulous new adventure fantasy that readers of Terry Brooks and Brent Weeks can fall in love with. Michael really delivers a great story that keeps to the idea of great epic fantasy while taking on fantasy clichés and having fun with the idea of two thieves caught in the wrong place, at the wrong time. I read the first book – and I was hooked.”

Michael J. Sullivan says: “"I couldn't be happier to have The Riyria Revelations released by Orbit. Of all the fantasy imprints, they have shown an unsurpassed eye for quality and I'm both excited and humbled to be included in a select group of authors as talented as Brent Weeks, Gail Carriger, and so many others."

The first book in the saga, The Crown Conspiracy, was self-published through Ridan Publishing, a company started by Sullivan’s wife. He’s been a Kindle bestseller in historical fantasy ever since.

Born in Detroit, Michigan, Michael J. Sullivan has lived in Vermont, North Carolina, and Virginia. He worked as a commercial artist and illustrator, founding his own advertising agency in 1996, which he closed in 2005 to pursue writing full-time. He currently resides in Fairfax, Virginia with his wife and three children."

Congratulations to Mr. Sullivan!

Here are the FBC reviews of all five volumes so far:

Read FBC Review of The Crown Conspiracy
Read FBC Review of Avempartha
Read FBC Review of Nypron Rising
Read FBC Review of The Emerald Storm
Read FBC Review of Wintertide

Edit 2/23: As noted in comments Mr. Sullivan has a blog post about the announcement, discussing the issue of the 6th volume and in the comments there it is noted that while indeed the last book will be published in early 2012 rather than the expected Spring 2011, Orbit is looking into issuing it as a single volume too in addition to being part of omnibus 3 together with Wintertide, so people who have the first five volumes complete the set. I do not know how the issue will be addressed logistically since short print runs are quite expensive and POD is still in infancy, so it may be done only electronically, but it's good to know that people are listening to readers' concerns!

I also would like to note that while sure, I would have loved to have Percepliquis this spring, the delay is of the order of 8-9 months which is nothing in the traditional publishing slowly moving business model, however much it seems for us used to the fast moving internet world and I am very happy that the series has a chance to get the wide audience it deserves.

A Dance Of Cloaks by David Dalglish (Reviewed by Mihir Wanchoo)

Official David Dalglish Website

Read an excerpt HERE

Order A Dance Of Cloaks HERE

Read an Article by the Author HERE

AUTHOR INFORMATION: David Dalglish is the author of the popular Half Orc fantasy series which includes The Weight of Blood, The Cost of Betrayal, The Death of Promises and The Shadows of Grace. He was born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He graduated from Missouri Southern State University in 2006 with a degree in Mathematics and used to work with Special Education students. He lives with his family in Missouri; this book was his first standalone book.

BOOK BLURB: Thren Felhorn is the greatest assassin of his time. Marshalling the thieves' guilds under his control, he declares war against the Trifect, an allegiance of wealthy and powerful nobles.

Aaron Felhorn has been groomed since his childhood to be Thren's heir. Sent to kill the daughter of a priest, Aaron instead risks his own life to protect her from the wrath of his guild. In doing so, he glimpses a world beyond poison, daggers, and the iron control of his father.

Guilds twist and turn, trading allegiances for survival. The Trifect weakens, its reputation broken, its money dwindling... The players take sides as the war nears its end, and Thren puts in motion a plan to execute hundreds. Only Aaron can stop the massacre and protect those he loves...
Assassin or protector; every choice has its consequences!

CLASSIFICATION: Featuring a world wherein there are multiple factions at work, this book is a dark, character-driven, gritty fantasy novel in the vein of George R.R. Martin, Brent Weeks and Peter V. Brett.

FORMAT/INFO: A Dance of Cloaks is 217 pages divided over twenty nine numbered chapters with a prologue & epilogue. Narration is in the third person via several different point-of-views, both major characters and supporting ones as well, including the main protagonist Aaron Felhom, Thren Felhom, Alyssa Gemcroft, Kayla, Veliana, Maynard Gemcroft, and many other minor players. A Dance of Cloaks was supposed to be a stand alone novel however the author soon realized that the entire story could not be told in a single volume and hence is the first book in the Shadowdance trilogy.

This book is set in Dezrel, the same world as that of the Half-Orc Series and enough background information is provided for readers. The plot of the book is set before the events of the Half-Orc series. The book ends on a clean note but clearly indicates there is more to follow!

August 19, 2010 marked the North American publication of A Dance of Cloaks via paperback and ebook format. Cover art is provided by Peter Ortiz.

ANALYSIS: I read this book last year however due to certain personal reasons could not get the review published. While I was reading it, I was certainly struck by its fast pace, constant plot switches and mainly the unpredictability it brought to the table. A bit of history before one reads this book, the tale is set in the world of Dezrel, the same one of the Half-Orc series however any new reader can jump into this book and have no problem with it [I did the same]. It focuses on the character of Aaron Felhom who is in line to be the heir to Thren Felhom, the leader of the Spider Guild and a thoroughly deadly individual.

This book originally a standalone was supposed to show how Aaron became the person whom some readers have already met in Book 2 of the Half Orc series. Secondly the author was heavily impressed by George R.R. Martin’s "A Game of Thrones" and therefore was inspired to create a world wherein nothing is ultimately safe and the reader will be forced to turn the page to find out what happens next. It is safe to surmise that David has indeed accomplished what he set out to do.

Firstly there are four primary story threads ongoing in this tale, the first one focuses on Thren and his relentless march to wipeout the Tri-fect and secure a kingdom for himself, the second one focuses on Aaron, Thren’s heir and who is rather forced to learn how to become an effective ruler, the third thread focuses on Maynard Gemcroft, who is worried about his daughter Alyssa and about the precarious nature of his house and lastly Alyssa who is willful and faces danger through her choices. There are a few more characters and I feel to spell it all out would ruin the charm of this book. For most characters, nothing goes out as planned and the atmosphere prevalent is one wherein the reader will be forced to think about each character’s motives and plans.

The author does a fine job of constantly switching the tale focus and keeping the reader hooked with various twists and new POV characters. I was very surprised by this book as I simply went in without any assumptions, and yet I was completely blown away by the writing and overall plot. The prose is very good and draws the reader in and then keeps them hooked. The world setting is not explored much beyond the city of Veldaren but then you hardly notice as the action and intrigue never lets up. The world is much deeper than imagined and we do get glimpses and conversations of other things rummaging on the background but readers who have read the Half-Orc series might be able to glean more from them.

Negative points if any were almost negligible, not that this book is a masterpiece and will be counted as the next “A Game of Thrones”. What it is though; a fine book from an upcoming writer who read the aforementioned book and crafted a worthy tale set in his world. There are a few tropes which have been utilized here but again they have been presented in such a way that you do not cringe. Some readers might be a bit thrown off by the number of POV introduced especially during and just before the climax, also a couple of characters make an appearance after being introduced in the earlier half, but then again its not difficult to read and find out what they are up to. Another thing the author is guilty of; is that of finding the tale is longer than he imagined it to be, but considering his inspiration, this can be easily forgiven.

CONCLUSION: A Dance of Cloaks is a gritty book with intriguing characters and has a plot which will keep you hooked till the end. David Dalglish will definitely be gaining new fans with the release of this book and if he can continue his form with the next two releases in the Shadowdance trilogy, I can foresee him ascending new heights and being counted as one of fantasy’s rising stars.

God's War by Kameron Hurley (Reviewed by Mihir)

Official Kameron Hurley Website

Order God's War HERE

Watch the Book Trailer HERE

Read the first 3 Chapters HERE

Read an Interview with the author HERE and HERE

Download a free copy of the Author's entire short story collection HERE (Scribd) or HERE (Smashwords)

AUTHOR INFORMATION: Kameron Hurley was brought up in the state of Washington. She has led a nomadic lifestyle living in different places such as Alaska, South Africa and Illinois. She had been a participant of the Clarion West workshop in 2000. She also received a BA at the University of Alaska in 2001, and then got her Master's Degree from the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal in South Africa in 2003. Kameron currently lives in Ohio. Some of her previous short stories have appeared in various e-magazines such as Talebones, The Leading Edge, and Deep Outside.

BOOK BLURB: Nyx had already been to hell. One prayer more or less wouldn’t make any difference…

On a ravaged, contaminated world, a centuries-old holy war rages, fought by a bloody mix of mercenaries, magicians, and conscripted soldiers. Though the origins of the war are shady and complex, there’s one thing everybody agrees on–There’s not a chance in hell of ending it.

Nyx is a former government assassin who makes a living cutting off heads for cash. But when a dubious deal between her government and an alien gene pirate goes bad, her ugly past makes her the top pick for a covert recovery. The head they want her to bring home could end the war–but at what price?

The world is about to find out!

CLASSIFICATION: A mix of hardboiled noir with SF and mixed with a subgenre that the author refers to as bug-punk. God’s War is a little hard to classify but to sum it up in a line, it’s a tale of a woman warrior’s search for answers amidst a world of chaos.

FORMAT/INFO: God’s War is 286 pages long, divided over thirty nine numbered chapters, which are grouped into two sections. Narration is in the third person mainly via the protagonist Nyxnissa and a few of the chapters from the view of Rhys, Taite and Khos. God’s War is the first volume in the Umayma trilogy and will be followed by Infidel and Babylon (hopefully). This book can be read as a standalone and ends on a clear note.

January 18, 2011 marked the North American trade paperback publication of God’s War via Night Shade books. Cover art is provided by David Palumbo.

ANALYSIS: I was interested in Kameron Hurley’s book since I had heard about it late in 2009, I had originally included it in my 2010 anticipated list, however due to certain publishing dilemmas this book was given the pink slip by its original publisher and then was picked by Night Shade books. This delayed the book’s publication by nearly a year and so when I contacted Ms. Hurley for a review copy, she gladly obliged & I dove in wondering how it would stack up against my anticipation.

God’s War is divided into two parts, of which the first opens with Nyxnissa entering Faleen after selling her organ and looking for a new job of sorts. She looks up an old acquaintance [if acquaintance is indeed the word] however ends up being introduced to her old comrades who have an ulterior motive in meeting her. The first part thus ends soon after introducing Nyxnissa and Rhys and gives the reader a small but mysterious glimpse of the world of Umayma.

The second part opens a few years later showing Nyx with her rag tag band operating as a mercenary unit and trying to survive in a rather harsh world. They get an assignment of sorts which has every other mercenary, both groups and loners hustling to get more information about the bounty and the target. Something seems amiss to Nyx as the summons come from the Queen of Nasheen. Upon attending the summons, she learns that a visitor from the planet of New Kinaan is missing and if that person is not found or if she falls in to the enemy hands, the war will end very badly for Nasheen. Thus begins Nyx’s odyssey which will see her visit old and new places, meet older enemies and find out what really makes her tick.

Kameron Hurley’s book went slightly against my expectations in the sense that it is a far grittier book than I thought it would be; but the ace in the hole is her world building. The world is revealed bit by bit as the pages rush along and the reader realizes that as good as the story is, the world in itself a far more interesting place to ponder about. There are snippets revealed here and there which help the reader in understanding the history and background of the world. In this regards I found the author’s writing to be a bit similar to that of R. Scott Bakker as the history of the world is revealed slowly and the reader will have to piece things together to form the larger picture. However with an advantage that it’s less dense than Bakker’s books. This is a plus (for me) as while I like Bakker’s world-building and his story, sometimes it feels like a chore to read or re-read his books.

Another plus point is that Kameron brings a hardboiled approach to her protagonist and gives the reader further pondering points to this complex tale. The prose is good and will pull the reader in while raising issues about gender, war, faith & the validity of religion. The plot is a bit convoluted at the start but by the end, is wrapped up nicely, the flow of the story is also linear and enough mystery is presented to engage the reader both on the character and overall plot level. The last plus point is that author has rather cleverly given pointers about the world’s history by employing certain specific words and also utilizing them in the proper context.

Now there are a few kinks in this debut novel as well, namely the first part acts a 50 page prologue and can be a bit confusing with all the new terms which are used by the characters, this can be a bit disorienting to the reader however once the second part begins and the actual plot kicks in, that’s where the book really picks up speed. Some readers might be a bit put off by the hard protagonist, however Hurley shows off Nyx as a person with many sides to her and by the end of the tale, the reader will surely sympathize for her if not empathize with her. A slight drawback to this tale could be that while the reader gets a detailed view into Nyx, the same cannot be said of the other POV characters (besides Rhys to a certain extent).

CONCLUSION: Over all I really enjoyed this debut novel which was a fun mish mash of SF and hard boiled noir set on a distant world wherein even with a singular religion, society has disintegrated and men[in this case women as well] fight against each other for causes which they believe to be true. Kameron Hurley paints a rather bleak picture of the flaws of mankind which sees them fighting a war and thus repeating history as we are doomed to do.